Specifications: 864 cc SOHC Desmo V-twin, five speeds.

The 860-cc Super Sport Desmo racer was created in 1973, as Ducati saw their Grand Prix hopes disappearing in a cloud of two-stroke smoke and elected to contest endurance races, which had no engine size restrictions.

By boring the 750-cc engine to accept racing pistons from the 450 single, up to 90 horsepower was available at 8,200 rpm, and double victories at Barcelona’s 24-hour race at Montjuich Park would lend the name to later special models of the F1.

The bike on offer is a very clean example of a 1976 square-case 900 SS racer, with right hand gearshift, NCR-style fairing and the handsome original Imola fibreglass tank. It has Campagnolo alloy wheels, Marzocchi forks with the desirable centre axle, adjustable rear Marzocchi shocks, a 2-into-1 competition exhaust and Dell’Orto 40-mm carburettors.

Ridden by Amerigo Saltarelli from 1977 until 1980, it won the “Trofeo Maximoto 1200cc” Coppa Salvo d’Acquisto in 1979. It carries no race number, but the restoration work appears fresh and of good quality.